Method for fetching heads from piles

Abstract: The present invention relates to the manipulation of paper roll heads by means of a multi-axis robot (8). When the heads are fetched by means of the robot (8) from multiple piles (1 - 7), valid information on the position or height of the piles (1 - 7) is not known by the robot (8) after the piles are replenished. According to the invention, when the operation of the robot (8) is halted for the duration of, e.g., the replenishment of the head piles (1 - 7), the parameter data for all piles are set unknown. As the system operation is restarted, the robot (8) performs a slow-speed approach toward an uncalibrated pile, measures the pile data, that is, calibrates the pile height and position, and thus can perform the next pile approach through a normal fetch cycle on the basis of the measured data.

Description: The present invention relates to a method according to the preamble of claim 1 for fetching heads from a plurality of piles by means of a automatic multi-axis robot. In the wrapping of paper rolls the inner heads are first placed onto the ends of each roll, after which a sufficient length of the wrapper is wrapped about the roll and then the overlaps of the wrapper are crimped against the rims of the inner heads. Conventionally using a hot-melt glue, the outer head is next adhered to the end of the roll covering the crimped edge of the wrapper and the inner head. The inner head is usually relatively thick and thus capable of protecting the roll end against mechanical damage. The outer head can thus be thinner serving for the purpose of binding the wrapper at the roll ends and protecting the roll against humidity. Frequently, the coloring and printed pattern of the outer head are designed to give the roll a neat appearance. The heads can be placed on the roll ends in a number of different ways. Manual placing of the heads is the oldest method, and it is still suited for relatively small-capacity wrapping lines or applications not requiring an improved degree of automation. Here, the operator simply places the inner heads manually to the roll ends and the corresponding outer heads onto heated press platens, which next press the outer heads to adhere to the roll ends. The inner heads are held against the roll ends by means of separate retaining arms for the duration of the crimping of the wrapper overlaps against the roll ends. The adherence of the outer heads on the platens is in turn implemented with the help of a vacuum. Various kinds of automatic heading machines have long been in use and several different types of such equipment are known. A common feature for almost all automatic heading equipment is that, for each end of the roll, a separate heading machine with a head clamp is provided that serves for moving the head from the head pile to the roll end. In a prior-art heading machine, a rotatable arm is mounted on a vertical guide, said arm having at its end a rotatable vacuum clamp for grasping the heads. Such a heading machine is conventionally used in conjunction with different kinds of head storage shelves situated beside the heading machine. Using this machine, the heads are placed on the roll end so that the support arm of the clamp is transferred along the vertical guide to the level of the shelf containing the correct size of heads. Next, the support arm of the clamp and the heading machine itself are rotated until the clamp is aligned parallel with the shelf, subsequently the head is picked and transferred from the shelf to the roll end by rotating both the arm and the heading machine and moving the heading machine along the guide. In another system the heads are placed in piles on the factory hall floor and therefrom transferred to the roll ends by means of gantry heading manipulators. The gantry transfer carriage is constructed above the head piles and the heading manipulators are generally placed on a single, crosswise movable rail. Thus, a separate pile of heads of a predetermined size must be provided for each heading manipulator. A major drawback of the above-described systems is in that a separate heading manipulator plus a dedicated head storage shelf or head pile is required for both of the roll ends. The heading machines employed are purpose-built for manipulating heads only, whereby their control software is tailored particularly for each operating environment. Therefore, modifications to the operation of the system are cumbersome and require specialized design capabilities. To overcome these impediments, a standard industrial multi-axis robot can be employed for placing the heads. Such a robot can be integrated with the layout of the wrapping line in a manner permitting the robot to place a head on both ends of the roll or onto a press platen. For effective use of the robot, it must be provided with a two-sided clamp which through a flipping movement of the clamp is capable of sequentially picking heads for both roll ends, whereby the need for two separate head-fetching cycles is obviated. When fetching the outer heads it is of utmost importance to know the location of the piled heads so accurately as to permit direct fetching of the heads without a measurement of head pile location during the fetching cycle. The clamp of the robot must grasp the head by a predetermined point to ensure correct positioning of the head when it is released from the clamp. Equally important is also that the robot software has correct information of the height of the head piles. If the head pile height is known, the clamp of the robot can be controlled directly to the uppermost head without using an inching step when grabbing the head. Accurate placing of head piles to correct locations is impossible without unwieldy special arrangements, because the piles are brought in place by a lift truck or other transfer means not suited for accurate placement of the piles. Consequently, the actual position of the pile subsequent to the replenishment or change of the pile must be reported in some manner to the control software. This can be performed, for example, so that the wrapping station operator at system startup or after replenishment of piles through the control terminal enters the update information concerning the replenished piles as well as the height and position of the piles. Such a procedure is relatively clumsy and can lead to hazardous situations. To enter the pile height and location accurately requires a sufficiently accurate method of measuring such dimensions. The measurement cycle increases the system downtime consumed in the replenishment of the head piles and involves several error sources. If the wrapping station operator due to stress or other reasons enters incorrect measurement data to the control system or even forgets to enter the altered values of a pile, the robot software has no chance of detecting such incorrect information. Consequently, the robot performs the head fetch cycle on the basis of incorrect or outdated information, which may invoke extremely serious hazards. In the least severe cases the head fetch cycle fails or the head is incorrectly placed, whereby the error is detected and can be corrected. In the most serious case the robot can hit a head pile resulting in toppling or moving of the head pile, even a damage to the robot or other structures. In any case, the operation of the wrapping station is halted until the fault situation can be rectified. It is an object of the present invention to provide a method through which the robot software can autonomously calibrate the position and height of the piles, thus avoiding the fault situations described above. The invention is based on the principle of resetting pile parameter data if the robot operation is halted during, e.g., the replenishment of the head piles. At the restart of the operation, the robot performs a slow-speed approach including measurement steps to any uncalibrated pile thus measuring the pile height and position, while during the next head fetch cycle the approach is made at normal speed on the basis of the measured information. More specifically, the method according to the invention is characterized by what is stated in the characterizing part of claim 1. The invention offers significant benefits. The principal benefit of the method is the inherently safe operation of the heading system. As the number of human errors is minimized and the system operation is highly systematic, the possibilities of error are minimal. The measurements related to the calibration of pile heights and positions cause almost no impediment of system operating speed. The method is safe, because its operation is essentially based on the principle that when the operator poses a request to enter the robot's danger zone to replenish the piles, the robot is controlled to the home position and is allowed to continue its operation only after receiving a clearing message of the danger zone. Owing the position calibration steps, good accuracy in the placing of the heads is attained, and the position and height of the piles can be periodically verified based on, e.g., the number of head fetches performed from a certain pile. Such verification is necessary as the piles are not generally entirely straight. The method can be applied without performing major structural or software changes thus making it suitable for all standard types of industrial robots. The invention is next examined in greater detail with reference to attached drawings, in which Figure 1 shows a layout diagram of a robot station suited to the placing of outer heads, and Figures 2 - 4 show diagrammatically the measurement sequence according to the invention for calibrating the position information of a head pile. When a multi-axis robot 8 is used for transferring the heads, it is advantageously positioned so that the rotational center of the robot is coincident with the symmetry axis of the wrapping station/press platen unit. From this position the heads are easy to move to the roll ends or press platens 11, 12. With reference to Fig. 1, the robot 8 is placed in the above-mentioned fashion on the symmetry axis of the press platens 11, 12. Then, the head piles 1 - 7 are grouped in a natural manner to form a semi-circle as shown in the diagram, or alternatively, a U-pattern about the robot. The entire piling area shown in the diagram is surrounded by a protective fence which prevents access to the working envelope of the robot 8. During the operation of the robot 8, the heads are picked from the pile determined by the roll identification data and diameter by means of a clamp 10 mounted to the end of the arm 9 of the robot 8 and subsequently transferred to press platens 11, 12. The clamp 10 employed can be, e.g., a two-sided clamp such as the one shown in Figs. 2 - 4 having the sides of the clamp comprised of multiple resilient suction cups 13 which are mounted on base plate of the clamp 10. The outer rims of the suction cups 13 form a suction plane 14. Reference numeral 16 in the diagram indicates a photocell required for the position calibration, and reference numeral 15 indicates a head pile. When the system is initiated, the software of the robot 8 assumes the exact height and position information for all piles 1 - 7 to be unknown. On the other hand, if the system operation is stopped in a situation in which the software of the robot 8 possesses valid information on such pile height and position data, the operation is continued from the situation in which the system was stopped. In a situation of having the pile heights set as unknown, the robot 8 measures the pile height and position as it for the first time fetches a head from an unknown pile. In this context the term unknown pile refers to a pile whose height and position are not known to the software. The pile data are always written unknown when the robot operation is halted for any reason. A halt in this context refers to all system states causing the robot to stop with the exception of a controlled stop at, e.g., a work shift not involving a replenishment of any pile, whereby the latest updated information on the piles can be retained in the memory. In practice the pile data are always reset unknown due to reasons of safety, irrespective of whether the robot operation was stopped to a halt or in a controlled manner. The fetch cycle of the heads and their transfer to the roll ends or onto the press platens occurs so that the sensor station of the wrapping line tells the robot 8 the size and type of required head. Then, the robot 8 fetches the proper heads by means of the two-sided clamp 10 from the correct pile and transfers them onto the press platens 11, 12. If the heights and positions of the piles are known, the robot 8 transfers the clamp 10 by a high-speed movement to the uppermost position above the pile 15. Only the picking movement of the head is performed using the slow inching speed. Thus, the fetch cycle of the heads can be implemented in an extremely short time. When the head piles 1 - 7 are desired to be replenished or any pile changed, the operation is as follows. The station operator informs the robot of a need to enter the robot's danger zone. Then, the robot completes a possible uncompleted work cycle, drives itself to a predetermined position and assumes a safety state, after which the interlocks of the danger zone are deactivated and switched off. Next, the station operator can open the safety gate to the danger zone and enter the danger zone to change and/or replenish the head piles. After the operator has left the danger zone, closed the safety gate and reinstated the integrity of the danger zone, the height and position data for all piles are reset unknown. Followingly, the robot continues the manipulation of the heads in a programmed manner though performing its first approach to any pile via a particular approach and measurement cycle. The approach to an unknown pile takes place so that the presumed fetching height at a pile 15 is set equal to the maximum height of the pile plus a preset constant. The clamp 10 is transferred by a high-speed movement above the pile 15 to a level equal to the maximum height of the pile plus the preset constant wherefrom the slow-speed approach is commenced. The maximum travel of the clamp 10 from the starting height is limited to a constant length. When the upper surface of the pile 15 is detected by means of a photocell 16, the system either chooses to verify the position of the pile 15, or alternatively, sets the linear speed of the clamp to a yet slower inching speed of the picking step, and the remaining travel is set equal to the computed travel to the surface of the pile 15 or even slightly below the upper surface. The movement is stopped when a contact with the surface of the pile 15 is indicated by a mechanical sensor and this measured position is stored as the pile height. In the case the photocell 16 cannot detect the surface of the pile 15 within the constant maximum approach travel, that is, the pile height is less than the pile maximum height, a new approach length is allocated for the travel of the clamp 10 and the approach cycle is repeated. This cycle can be repeated until the upper surface of the pile 15 is detected, or alternatively, a preset minimum pile height is reached, whereby a message indicating a depleting pile is issued and a pile change is requested. After the height of the pile 15 has been measured, the deviation of the pile position is measured. Each pile has a preset position where the pile should be placed. During the above-described approach cycle, the clamp 10 is controlled above the pile to the point where the head picking should occur for a correctly placed pile. Consequently, after the pile height is measured, the clamp remains in the position relative to the pile where the head could be picked from a correctly placed pile. Next, the position of the pile 15 is calibrated via a sequence in which the clamp 10 is elevated slightly above the head surface and transferred toward the pile edge; in practice, this is performed as soon as the photocell detects the upper surface of the pile 15. The transfer takes place along the symmetry axis of the head pile. By definition, the symmetry axis of the head pile is the line passing through the center point of the pile and being aligned equidistant from the piles adjacent to the pile being measured. Each head diameter is assigned a preset transfer distance X extending from the initial position of the clamp 10 to the edge of the head pile 15. As is evident from Fig. 2, the transfer distance X is equal to the distance of the photocell 16 of the clamp 10 from the edge of a correctly placed head pile 15. While the mounting position of the photocell 16, and thus the distance X, can be selected freely, the mounting position is advantageously such that makes the transfer movement to occur over the symmetry axis K of the head pile, whereby the position of the clamp 10 relative to the head pile need not be altered for small-diameter piles. The transfer movement is preferably always performed as accurately as possible radially over the head. During the transfer movement X the photocell 16 detects the edge of the head pile. In Fig. 3 the edge of the pile 15 is shown correctly placed, whereby the pile position can be stored same as the preset position into the memory of the robot 8. By contrast, the position of the pile 15 in Fig. 4 is shown to be farther from the starting point of the measurement than the dimension X, whereby the pile position is set equal to (preset value(X) + ΔX). Correspondingly, if the pile edge is detected before the clamp 10 has been transferred by the distance X, the pile position is set equal to (preset value(X) - ΔX). When the heads are being fetched during the next fetch cycle from the pile, the clamp can thus be directly controlled to the corrected fetch position. The pile position measurement is performed in the radial direction alone, that is, along the axis aligned essentially radial relative to the rotational center of the robot 8. Lateral measurement of the piles is not necessary in practice, since the piles are so close in this direction that a major displacement hardly can occur; however, additional sensor can be used to implement pile position calibration in this direction, too. After both the height and position data of the pile are stored into the memory of the robot 8, the next head can be fetched directly from the calibrated position of the measured pile without resorting to the slower approach step based on position measurement with the help of the photocell. All other piles are calibrated in a similar manner when heads are fetched from them for the first time. Thus, no separate measurement cycle for all piles is needed prior to the start of the actual heading operation. The position and height of the piles 1 - 7 is calibrated at preset intervals. Each head pile and type can be assigned a proper number of fetch cycles after which the height and position of the pile are measured. The essential purpose of the calibration measurement is to update the pile position information, since the piles are often sideways skewed, whereby the coordinates of the pile top change as the pile height is lowered by the fetching of the heads. The calibration cycle is also performed after fault situations. As the software of the robot 8 can continually run on the basis of accurate pile position and height information, the number of operating and heading errors is significantly reduced. Besides those described above, the present invention can have alternative embodiments. In the above-described embodiment the sensor instrumentation of the clamp was implemented by means of mechanical and optical sensors. For the method according to the invention, however, the arrangement and types of sensors employed has no relevance, thus permitting the sensor instrumentation to be solved in any desired manner. The measurement order in the calibration of pile position and height data can be interchanged, while such change may complicate the detection of the pile edge if the pile is appreciably lower than the preset maximum height of the pile. In the measurement of the pile position, the direction of the transfer movement X can be opposite to that described above, and when necessary, also the lateral position of the head pile can be calibrated. The above-described embodiment performs calibration on two pile coordinates, namely the pile height plus the pile position in one direction, and both pile parameters are reset unknown at the occurrence of a system halt. Besides these, the pile data update can include pile position calibration in some other direction, possibly also identification of the head type contained in the pile, whereby different types of heads can be placed in the pile without entering prior information to the robot software. To achieve identification of head type or grade, however, a head ID code and compatible code reader are required.

Claims: A method for fetching heads from piles by means of a multi-axis robot (8), in which method: the heads are placed in at least two piles (1 - 7) within the operating area of the robot (8), and the heads are fetched from the piles (1 - 7) by picking with the help of a clamp (10) mounted to the end of the arm (9) of the robot, characterized in that in a halt situation of the operation of the robot (8), at least one of the pile data parameters is reset unknown for each pile, and said unknown pile parameter is resolved for each pile (1 - 7) in conjunction with the first fetch cycle of a head from the pile after said halt situation. A method as defined in claim 1, characterized in that said pile data parameter to be reset unknown is the height of the pile (15). A method as defined in claim 1, characterized in that said pile data parameter to be reset unknown is the position of the pile (15) in a predetermined direction. A method as defined in claim 1, characterized in that said pile data parameter to be reset unknown is both the height and position of the pile. A method as defined in claim 1, 3 or 4, characterized in that the height of the pile (15) is determined after the halt situation so that the presumed height of the pile (15) is set equal to the maximum height of the pile, the clamp (10) is controlled over the pile, to a preset distance above the preset maximum pile height, the clamp (10) is lowered toward the pile (15) until the upper surface of the pile (15) is detected, or the clamp (10) has been lowered by a preset distance, whereby if the proximity of the upper surface of the pile (15) has been detected, a slow-speed inching mode is assumed in which the lowering movement is continued to the instant in which either clamp contact with the pile upper surface is sensed, whereby the sensed pile height is set as the current pile height, or alternatively, the clamp has been lowered by a preset distance, and if the proximity of the upper surface of the pile (15), or a contact with the upper surface of the pile (15), has not been detected within the preset lowering distance, the movement of the clamp (10) is continued in preset lowering distances until either the upper surface of the pile (15) or a preset minimum height of the pile (15) is reached. A method as defined in any foregoing claim 1, 3 - 5, characterized in that the position of the pile (15) is determined so that the clamp (10) is controlled above the pile (15) to a position corresponding to the initial picking position of heads from a correctly placed pile (15), which position is then used as the starting point of the position measurement, the clamp is next transferred toward the head pile edge radially with regard to the pile (15) until the edge of the pile (15) is detected, the difference (ΔX) between the distance from the initial point to the detected pile edge and the distance from the initial point stored in memory for each pile size to the edge of correctly positioned pile is determined, and the position information corrected by said difference is set as the valid position of the pile. A method as defined in claim 6, characterized in that the transfer path of the clamp (10) at least essentially traverses the symmetry axis (K) of the pile.

Inventors: NIEMINEN SEPPO, OHTONEN AIMO, NIEMINEN, SEPPO, OHTONEN, AIMO
Applicants: VALMET CORP, VALMET CORPORATION
Application year: 1994
Main classification: B65B25
IPC codes: B65B25